TV Anime ALL OUT!!: Photo Report from the Production Studio

ALL OUT!, the new rugby-themed anime series will begin its broadcast in October 6. The original comic series by Shiori Amase is currently serialized in monthly Morning Two.

The story revolves around the Kanagawa High School rugby team: the complete beginner Kenji Gion, the chicken-hearted guy with a good build Sumiaki Iwashimizu, the captain with a burning fighting spirit Takuya Sekizan, the always-smiling kind sub-captain Mutsumi Hachioji.

The production of this first-ever rugby-focused TV anime series is handled by TMS Entertainment and MADHOUSE.

In the studio, the stuff members are working separately in different teams: a production team, a drawing team, a filming team, 3DCG team and a finishing team. The people in each team are working very silently and seriously. They just work and progress steadily. We could feel how serious they were through the awkward silence in the studio. We tried not to disturb them too much, so we tiptoed around to get a glimpse of the character illustrations put on their desks, the well-read rugby rule books and their scribbles about rugby on sticky notes.

The one who leads the anime production is director Kenichi Shimizu. He is an outstanding director who has worked on great anime series such as Parasite -the maxim-. Interestingly enough, Shimizu used to be in a rugby club back in high school and he has a certain advantage in how to depict the sport in the anime.

The character designer is Masanori Shino. His player designs are beautiful. He has so far worked as a character designer for BLACK LAGOON and Shigurui: Death Frenzy. Shino said, ‘I have had a tough time adapting the characters into the anime format since the author draws them in a very unique way like their body shapes look somewhat feminine. I’m sure the drawing team is also having trouble finding their way haha. However, I believe it will be an awesome work. Please stay tuned for what we can show.’

When we asked director Shimizu about the anime production, he said, ‘It’s been really difficult to accurately depict poses athletes make. I’d really love to make the best of all the awesome panels from the comic series. I don’t know if we can transcend the comic. I’d love to, but I’m not so sure. That’s how I feel now.’

Director Shimizu used to be about 10 kg heavier back in his high school rugby days and he loved doing low-slung tackles like the protagonist, Gion. ‘Playing rugby is definitely much more fun than just watching it. It feels wonderful.’ It seemed like the director is still quite passionate about the sport.

On the official website, there is a lot of exciting content such as event reports, original icons and wallpapers. There will certainly be more in the future. There is also an ongoing special Twitter project to be a part of the Jinko rugby team.

The latest volume of the original comic series is volume 10. You can read the first volume for free on the Morning official website.

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